By Emma Njoku
Two Pakistani businessmen were arrested with eight kilograms of cocaine by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos on Saturday.
Director, Media & Advocacy, NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, who made the disclosure in a statement, yesterday, said the illicit drug was concealed in a public address system as the suspects attempted to board a Qatar Airways flight to Lahole, Pakistan via Doha.
“The two suspects: Asif Muhammed, 45 and Hussain Naveed, 57, who hold Nigerian residence permits suspected to be fake are frequent travellers to Nigeria, under the guise of doing textile business. They were arrested on Saturday, November 5, at the Lagos airport, barely a week after they came to Nigeria, that is, Sunday, October 30.
“Operatives at the SAHCO import shed of the airport on Friday, November 4 seized 13 cartons of tramadol 225mg and 200mg imported from Karachi, Pakistan. The consignment has a total weight of 465.10kg and 642,800 pills of the pharmaceutical opioid.
The previous day, Thursday, November 3, operatives at the NAHCO export shed of the airport also intercepted a consignment of different illicit drugs: cannabis, cocaine and methamphetamine as well as tramadol 225 mg and rohypnol concealed in foot wears and soap packs going to UAE, Dubai. A 32-year-old Oladitan Serah Olufunmilayo, who presented the consignment for export, was arrested,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, two businessmen who have been on the run for months over their involvement in drug trafficking have been arrested by anti-narcotic officers assigned to track them. Nnebo Ikechukwu Christopher, who has been wanted for his role in the importation of 40 cartons containing 346,800 pills of co-codamol, a brand of paracetamol with codeine seized at the cargo wing of the MMIA local airport since March 2022, was arrested last Thursday.
In the same vein, operatives on the trail of an automobile parts dealer, Omeje Oliver (a.k.a David Mark), since April, eventually arrested him on Monday, October 31, in Enugu, where he fled to after abandoning his business at Aspanda, Trade Fair Complex Lagos. He was wanted in connection with the seizure of 600 grams of heroin concealed inside soles of lady’s foot wears going to Liberia, on April 16.
On the same day, Omeje was arrested, operatives at the SAHCO export shed of the Lagos airport intercepted 550 grams of cannabis concealed in machine parts going to Dubai, UAE, while the sender, Ogbure Victor Ifeanyi, was later arrested.
In Katsina State, operatives on patrol at Malumfashi-Zaria road, arrested a blind man, Bukar Haruna, 52, and his son, Saka Haruna, 30, while heading to Niger Republic with 20.5kg cannabis and 10 grams of exol-5. They hail from the Damagram area of Niger Republic.